Most banks in India charge somewhere between 1.5% to 3.5% on every international transaction, on top of whatever exchange rate you're already paying. It's a bummer, which is why IDFC FIRST Bank just removed that fee entirely across its full credit card portfolio for every cardholder, without anyone having to ask. This might sound like a great deal for IDFC FIRST Bank credit Card holders, but here's what everyone's missing.

What actually changed

IDFC FIRST Bank announced zero forex markup on all its credit cards, and the part worth paying attention to is how unconditional it is. This isn't a new card variant you need to apply for. It isn't restricted to customers who upgrade or meet a spending threshold. Existing cardholders get the benefit automatically on eligible international transactions, no action required on their end at all.

For context, a 3.5% markup on a ₹1 lakh international purchase, a flight booking, an overseas course fee, a hotel paid directly, works out to ₹3,500 in fees most people don't even notice on their statement. Removing that across an entire card portfolio, not just one flagship travel card, is a genuinely large move.

It also quietly removes a reason a lot of people carry a separate prepaid forex card for international trips or online purchases, since the main advantage of those cards was avoiding exactly this markup.

The catch, and it's a real one

Effective October 26, 2026, international transactions on IDFC FIRST credit cards will stop earning Reward Points entirely.

So the actual trade being made here isn't "IDFC FIRST cards got better with no downside." It's "the fee moved from being charged upfront to being paid in foregone rewards." Whether that's still a net win depends entirely on what you were earning on international spend before.

Here's the honest comparison:

If your IDFC FIRST card was earning a modest 1% to 2% on international spend before, this is a clear win, you're trading a small reward for a larger, guaranteed fee saving. If you were holding a card specifically because it earned strong rewards or transfer-partner miles on international transactions, zero markup doesn't fully make up for losing that earn entirely, especially on large-ticket international spend where the points would have mattered.

There's a second, quieter effect too: international spend on an IDFC FIRST card will no longer count toward reward-linked milestones once this takes effect, even though the transaction itself still counts toward your overall spend and credit limit usage.

Who this actually benefits most

Frequent international spenders who weren't chasing rewards anyway. If you're paying overseas tuition, using the card for work travel expenses reimbursed separately, or just want the lowest-cost way to pay in a foreign currency, this is now one of the more straightforward options in the Indian market, no card-switching, no annual fee calculus, no forex card top-ups.

Anyone who was defaulting to a prepaid forex card purely to dodge the markup. That specific reason to carry a second card just got weaker.

Occasional international shoppers, ordering from a site that bills in USD or EUR, paying a subscription in a foreign currency, small transactions where the reward points were never going to add up to much anyway.

Who should think twice

If you hold an IDFC FIRST card specifically for its transfer-partner miles or a strong international reward multiplier, and your international spend is large enough that those points genuinely mattered, it's worth comparing against a card that still earns rewards on forex spend even with a markup attached. A card earning 3% back in miles with a 2% markup can still beat 0% markup and 0% rewards, depending on how you value those miles.

The actual question this creates

This is exactly the kind of decision that isn't a fixed rule, "IDFC FIRST is now the best card for international spend" or "it isn't" both miss the point. It depends on which of your cards earns what, how much you're spending abroad, and whether you value the guaranteed fee saving over the reward points you'd be giving up.

If you're standing at a checkout deciding which of your cards to use for an international payment after October 26, that's not a question with one universal answer; it's a question about your specific wallet. That's exactly what Wisor is built for: ask it which of your cards is actually best for a given international purchase, and it'll weigh the forex markup, the reward rate, and what you'd be giving up on each one, rather than you trying to hold all of that in your head at checkout.

Want to know if or which IDFC Credit Card is best for you based on your spends?
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This blog was written with the help of Wisor, India's First Credit card Advisor